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Existing research suggests a majority of faculty include social justice content in research courses but not through the use of existing quantitative data for in-class activities that foster mastery of data analysis and interpretation and curiosity about social justice-related topics. By modeling data-driven dialogue and the deconstruction of quantitative meaning making related to social justice in and around social work practice topics, we can prepare our students to be agents of change in their social work careers and possibly engage our students in an often difficult course. Specifically, I provide examples for how discussions about socioeconomic justice can be infused in teaching about univariate, bivariate, and multivariate statistical analyses from the perspectives of critical consumption and the production of research.

This narrative reflects my journey as a White woman who is part of a team of leaders in a school of social work while developing and implementing an inwards-facing racial justice accountability initiative. This initiative was focused on developing an institutional strategy for confronting, addressing, and dismantling racism within our School of Social Work at Salem State University. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disability communities engaged with social work recognize how critical feminist inquiry and disability justice principles often overlap to promote anti-ableist theorizing, research, practice, and education. Both the feminist scholarship and the disability justice movement center the voices and perspectives of those most excluded, reflecting the intersectional experiences of disability communities in social work. In this brief, we draw on significant events, such as the impact of climate change and criminal legal systems on disabled people, to map connections between critical feminisms, disability justice principles, and social work values. In re-imagining disability justice as a form of critical feminism, we highlight parallels in their guiding principles and explore how their multi-issue frameworks interrogate the same systems of power and oppression. Through this re-envisioning, we build upon the knowledge offered by intersectional disability communities that center interdependence as practices of survival and resistance. The authors suggest that social workers engaged with principles of disability justice and critical feminisms would do well to consider interdependence, collective care, and mutual aid as pathways toward inclusive and anti-ableist professional praxis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent materials from the U.S. Council on Social Work Education note that regardless of some successes, racial equity in higher education has not significantly progressed. Recent scholarship has noted racial discrimination in social work academia. However, we were not able to find any publications about racial disproportionality in social work education grading or educational attainment. In this article, we document an intentional anti-racist, equity-minded practice in considering academic outcomes by race and ethnicity in individual professors’ students over a two-year period. We detail simple analyses educators can use to examine assessment practices—the use of population percentage comparisons/disproportionality analysis to assess for the potential presence of disproportionality. These analyses are intended as a simple starting point for considerations of what is going on pedagogically in the classroom and the mind and actions of the professor as an equity-minded, anti-racist practitioner. We model the use and consideration of assessment data with examples from our own teaching. We found our empirical inquiry focused on racial equity to be instructive in both process and outcome considerations. We consider the ways in which our findings may or may not be related to implicit bias and/or structural racism in the social work education setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Workplace violence is a serious and surprisingly understudied occupational hazard in social service settings. The authors of this study conducted an anonymous, Internet-based survey of Massachusetts social service agencies to estimate the incidence of physical assault and verbal threat of violence in social service agencies, understand how social service agencies collect data on workplace violence, and identify disparities in who is at risk in terms of staff education and training level and the work setting. The study gathered general descriptions of each agency and compiled incidence data on workplace violence that were collected by agencies in fiscal year 2009. The key findings of this descriptive study showed high rates of workplace violence against social services providers and a pattern of risk disparity, with significantly more risk for direct care versus clinical staff. These results are based on data routinely collected by social service agencies that typically remain unexamined. A research agenda that is sensitive to potential occupational health disparities and focuses on maximizing workplace safety in social services is needed.

This narrative documents the early stages of a collective called #SWEDUACTS. We are four White, female social work educators who have led the planning of a teach-in event held in October of 2020 and subsequent monthly drop-in, peer-led Professional Learning Community meetings drawing dozens of participants over nine months. We reflect here on how engaging in the planning and delivery of the drop-in sessions helps ground our commitment to anti-racist pedagogy as well as facilitates the capacity of other social work instructors to build their own capabilities as anti-racist social work pedagogues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing literature suggests that youth with intellectual disabilities are at increased risk for child maltreatment. Little is known about youth with intellectual disabilities who are supervised by child welfare authorities or living in foster care. Reasons for child welfare system involvement and placement types are explored. In this cross-sectional exploratory study, we drew on data from the Adoption and Foster Care Reporting System (AFCARS) for youth in 46 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. A sample of 17,714 youth with intellectual disabilities and a comparison group (n = 655,536) were identified for 1999. Findings have implications for preventing the removal of youth from caregivers and the promotion of community inclusion of foster youth while in foster care.

Little is known about the demographic and clinical characteristics of people with intellectual disabilities and substance abuse problems. Drawing on health care billing claims for people with Medicaid coverage aged 12-99 years, the characteristics of people with intellectual disability and a history of substance abuse (N = 9,484) were explored and compared with people with intellectual disability but without substance abuse. Age- and/or gender-adjusted odds ratios were derived from logistic regression analyses to consider differences in demographic and clinical diagnoses. People with intellectual disability and substance abuse constituted 2.6% of all people with intellectual disability, most of whom had a diagnosis of mild or moderate intellectual disability. People with intellectual disability and substance abuse problems were, on average, 2 years older than the comparison group and less likely to be White. The sample was more likely than the comparison group to have serious mental illness or depression and substance abuse-related disorders were not prevalent. These data provide a comparison point for existing studies of mental health diagnoses as well as new information about substance abuse disorders. Implications relate to the identification of substance abuse among people with intellectual disabilities as well as the establishment of demographic and clinical correlates.

For some, community inclusion facilitates access to alcohol and drugs and, therefore, the potential for developing substance abuse disorders. However, little is known about substance abuse treatment use among people with intellectual disabilities. Using standardized performance measures, substance abuse treatment utilization was examined for Medicaid-covered people with intellectual disabilities and substance abuse (N = 9,484) versus people without intellectual disabilities (N = 915,070). The sociobehavioral model of healthcare use guides multivariate logistic regression analyses of substance abuse treatment utilization patterns, revealing disability-related disparities. Factors associated with utilization included being non-White, living in a nonurban area, having a serious mental illness, and living in a state with a generous Medicaid plan for substance abuse treatment. Implications relate to health policy, service delivery patterns, and the need for cross-system collaboration in the use of integrated treatment approaches.

People with intellectual disabilities (ID) have experienced increasing levels of community participation since deinstitutionalization. This freedom has facilitated community inclusion, access to alcohol and drugs, and the potential for developing substance abuse (SA) disorders. People with ID, who are known to have high rates of co-occurring serious mental illness (SMI), may be especially vulnerable to the consequences of this disease and less likely to use SA treatment. Using standardized performance measures for SA treatment access (initiation, engagement), rates were examined retrospectively for Medicaid beneficiaries with ID/SA/SMI ages 12 to 99 (N = 5,099) and their counterparts with no ID/SA/SMI (N = 221,875). Guided by the sociobehavioral model of health care utilization, age-adjusted odds ratios and logistic regression models were conducted. People with ID/SA/SMI were less likely than their counterparts to access treatment. Factors associated with initiation included being nonwhite, living in a rural area, and not being dually eligible for Medicare; factors associated with engagement included all of the same and having a fee-for-service plan, a chronic SA-related disorder, or both. Social work policy and practice implications for improving the health of people with ID/SA/SMI through policy change, cross-system collaboration, and the use of integrated treatment approaches are discussed.

Childhood injuries lead to increased morbidity and result in significant costs to public insurance programs. People with mental retardation, most of whom are covered by Medicaid, are at high risk for injury, which has implications for community inclusion, a central policy goal. Medicaid data from inpatient, outpatient, and long-term care settings represent an important new resource for injury surveillance in this population. Injury prevalence for 8.4 million Medicaid-eligible children in 26 states was measured using 1999 eligibility and claims data; 36.9% Medicaid beneficiaries ages 1 to 20 with mental retardation had at least one injury claim as compared with 23.5% of those without mental retardation. Prevalence rates are reported by gender and age for a variety of injury types.

The article discusses the call for social work professionals to develop their Disability cultural competence with priorities on inclusion and antiableism as of January 2023. Topics covered include social work's alignment with the intersectional Disability Justice movement, ableism integration with social work education, and four steps to realize antiableism. Also noted are the steps of ableism recognition, generation of relevant data, supporting leadership, and promoting partnerships.

Many intersections exist between communities of colour, the disability community, and other social identity groups. For example, one in four Black or African American members in the United States are disabled. Disability is also more prevalent in queer communities. Yet, social workers in the helping professions rarely make these connections. The application of an intersectional, anti-oppressive, "critically culturally competence" theoretical practice framework for empowerment-oriented work with the disability community is presented. Specific guidance is provided for addressing how social service providers can develop their "disability lenses" in pursuit of anti-racist and anti-ableist practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considerations of the disability community within child welfare generally and the child protection sector specifically are well-served using an intersectional analytical lens. We aimed to determine how intersectionality is listed in the child welfare literature in the context of disability and to describe how and to what extent researchers integrate, embed, and engage intersectionality in the conduct of their research. This critical literature review was informed by scoping review strategies, with qualitative thematic analysis to help us to produce descriptive patterns. It was unexpected that less than half of the articles engaged in the intersectionality of child welfare or child protection and disability, and in only 23.8 percent of the sample articles was this explicitly engaged. Our primary finding is that researchers use the term intersectionality but are not always rigorously engaging with the concept methodologically. We recommend the use of 'strong intersectionality' methodological techniques and deeper consideration of disability as a social identity in this research arena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the scale and scope of the criminal legal system is often discussed with attention to racial disproportionalities, the fact that disabled people are overrepresented at all points in the system is less discussed by social workers. Disabled people come into contact with the criminal legal system as suspects, defendants, incarcerated persons, victims, and witnesses. Compared to people without disabilities, disabled people are more likely to experience victimization, be arrested, be charged with a crime, and serve longer prison sentences once convicted. These trends are even more profound for disabled people with intersecting marginalized identities, such as people of color, women, poor people, and those who identify as LGBTQ. This article provides an overview of the connections between disability, law enforcement, and practices of imprisonment in the United States. We provide a historical overview of the involvement of disabled people in the criminal legal system, review the prevalence of disability in the criminal legal system, and then discuss the unique ways in which disabled people are impacted by the criminal legal system. We conclude by providing recommendations for social work practice and advocacy based in disability justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The promotion of speedy, permanent adoption outcomes for children in foster care whose parental rights have been terminated is a central child welfare policy goal. However, while both children of color and children with disabilities are at greater risk for child welfare involvement, little is known about influence of these intersecting identities on adoption rates. This cross-sectional national study draws on the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) to explore the between and within group foster care outcomes of adoption. While we expected to see advantages in outcomes based on identification with privileged social identities, our findings were much more varied. Implications relate to the need for intersectional approaches to equity assessments of child welfare systems and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A baseline framework is proposed for social workers to plan a management approach that balances 'dignity of risk' with risk management for people with substance abuse and mental retardation.

Drawing on national, longitudinal Adoption and Foster Care Analysis, and Reporting System data (2005–2015), demographic, health, foster care, and geographic characteristics of decedents (N = 3653) aged 1–17 years were examined. On average, decedents were 6 years old, the highest proportion died as infants, and experienced significant trauma in their short lives either through maltreatment or exposure to parental substance use. A noted increase in Medicaid coverage among decedents over time suggests critical access to concurrent treatment and hospice care, but this is unavailable to children with private insurance. This study has policy implications related to the 2010 Affordable Care Act. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Of the nearly 500 000 children in foster care, several hundred children die each year. Their quality of life at end of life is a matter of their foster care experience. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether serious illness was associated with foster care placement outcomes. Methods: US foster care data from 2005 to 2015 were used. Children who were younger than 18 years with residence in the United States were included. Serious illness (ie, physical health, mental/behavioral health, developmental disabilities) was measured via the foster care files. Two foster care placement outcomes were created (ie, type of placement, placement instability). Using multinomial and logistic regressions, the influence of serious illness on placement outcomes was evaluated while controlling for demographic, geographic, prior trauma, and foster care support characteristics. Results: Fifty-seven percent of the children were placed with nonrelatives, 27% in group homes/institutions, and 17% with relatives. Twenty-eight percent experienced placement instability. Serious illness was significantly associated with nonrelative (relative risk ratio [RRR] = 1.97; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.58-2.45) and group home/institution placement (RRR = 2.67; 95% CI = 2.09-3.40). Serious illness was not significantly related to placement instability. Children with serious illness were no more likely than their peers to experience multiple foster care placements. Conclusions: Foster care youth at end of life were more likely to be placed with nonrelatives or in group homes/institutions. They also did not experience the disruption and stress of being moved to multiple foster homes while seriously ill. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although women with disabilities are at increased risk for intimate partner violence (IPV), little is known about how this phenomenon impacts transitional-aged young women with disabilities who are still trying to master the developmental challenges of adolescence. This study explores risk factors for and prevalence of IPV by drawing on a population-based sample of women ages 18-21 with (N = 1,616,207) and without (N = 7,554,064) self-reported disabilities. Findings suggest that risk factors for IPV were more prevalent among sample members, as was past year experience of IPV. This study has implications for school social workers and disability service providers who interact with this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The promotion of speedy, permanent outcomes for foster children is a central child welfare policy goal. However, while children with intellectual disability (ID) are at greater risk for child welfare involvement, little is known about their case outcomes. This cross-sectional national study explores between-group foster care outcomes. Foster children with intellectual disability were more likely to have experienced an adoption disruption or dissolution but less likely to be reunified with a parent, primary caretaker or other family member. Implications for interagency collaboration in support of pre and post-foster care discharge support services are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on a study on disparities in substance abuse treatment utilization among women with intellectual disability. Topics discussed include women entering substance use disorder treatment have severe medical and psychiatric problems; and lack of access to treatment due to poor insurance coverage and substance-abuse-related stigma.

Access to substance abuse treatment is a noted concern for people with disabilities. Although much is known about elders with dual eligibility for Medicaid and Medicare regarding any care utilization and expenditures, little is known about their younger counterparts and how substance abuse might contribute. Drawing on national Medicaid claims, treatment utilization was explored for adults with and without dual eligibility for Medicare. People with dual eligibility were less likely to both initiate and engage in treatment as compared to those without dual eligibility. Implications relate to how existing systems provide substance abuse treatment to people with disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Violence against women is a top human rights issue for women with disabilities, a population that is more at risk for intimate partner violence (IPV). Existing research on violence against women with disabilities has pointed to the need for population-based sampling, the inclusion of women of non-White descent, and the use of literature-based definitions of IPV, conditions all met by this study. Women with disabilities were less likely to report past-year IPV in the form of verbal abuse, but more likely to report threats and physical violence. Case management implications relate to the need for disability-sensitive IPV assessment training at all state disability offices and the need to facilitate the accessibility of traditional IPV systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People with mental retardation (MR) and addiction are an especially vulnerable population, yet evidence-based approaches to substance abuse (SA) treatment for this group are limited. Research suggests that SA-related services for this population are most likely received in nonaddiction settings that are generally focused on provision of mental health services to populations with MR and that might be unequipped for this work. This fact, combined with documented challenges to cross-system collaboration, suggests the potential for discontinuities in care for people with MR and SA. Recommendations for SA screening and a framework for cross-system collaboration are presented with specific recommendations for the ways in which social workers in both MR and SA service settings can promote positive client outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People with mental retardation have experienced increasing levels of freedom and access to community living over the past 40 years. This has included access to alcohol, illicit drugs and the potential for developing substance abuse and related problems. The manner in which people with mental retardation have handled this access has been recognized since the de-institutionalization era began. Despite this recognition, documented barriers to accessing substance abuse treatment tbr people with mental retardation exist and there is an overarching lack of knowledge about accessible treatment approaches for this population. Policy and practice recommendations are presented for disability and rehabilitation social workers in order to better understand and combat barriers to substance abuse treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How child protection and welfare policies address the disability community is a matter of utmost importance and urgency in the context of well-established inequalities. We present a policy content analysis of national policy documents across the United States, Northern Ireland, Australia, and the Republic of Ireland through the theoretical frame of a welfare regimes typology. Key findings include the conflation of disability with vulnerability in all but one context. Also evident is a lack of overt definition of disability, and opportunities for developing specific jurisdictional guidance and regulations focussed on embedding best practices in supporting disabled clients at all system levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]